Chronic metabolic diseases such as diabetes, and its frequent complications, such as cardiovascular disease and autonomic neuropathy, have become epidemics in the United States. Tens of millions of Americans live with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and autonomic neuropathy. A majority of these individuals have been living with these afflictions for multiple numbers of years. The loss of productivity and daily activity due to these diseases is substantial. Additionally, it has been estimated that millions of individuals see a physician for treatment of these maladies every year. Additional millions will develop diabetes, cardiovascular disease and autonomic neuropathy in the near future. Thus, our healthcare system is significantly affected by the amount of resources that are allocated to treat diabetes, cardiovascular disease and autonomic neuropathy each year.
The aforementioned diseases correlate to the autonomic nervous system and the endothelial functions of a patient. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is an extensive neural network whose main role is to regulate a patient's internal environment and bodily functions by controlling homeostasis, which includes hemodynamics, blood pressure, heart rate, blood glucose level, sweating and visceral functions. The ANS acts through a balance of stimulation or inhibition of its own two components—the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. Sympathetic and parasympathetic branches act via neurotransmitters and receptors activation. The endothelial functions of a patient are related to the ability of the blood vessels to dilate when necessary. Endothelial dysfunction can be defined as reduced bio-availability of nitric oxide (NO), which plays many roles in maintaining vascular health, most importantly its role in vasomotor functions. Hence, endothelial dysfunction is defined as an impairment of endothelium dependent vasodilation. Homeostasis is supported by the ANS and endothelial functions of the body.
As stated by Lippincott: “Disease or death is often the result of dysfunction of internal environment and regulatory mechanisms. Understanding the body's processes, responses and functions is clearly fundamental to the intelligent practice of medicine.” The current clinical contexts, lab tests, functional tests (such as EKG or Doppler) and imagery available provide doctors a certain amount of data to establish diagnoses and treatment plans on predictions based upon recognized scientific background and practitioner decision. None of these analyses, however, take into account the overall potential of the regulatory abilities of the individual patient. Without knowing a patient's potential adaptation to a dysfunction or disease, it is difficult to formulate a well-informed treatment plan.
In general, treatment for diabetes, cardiovascular disease and autonomic neuropathy can be more effective if these diseases are diagnosed accurately and early. Currently, however, the approaches available for diagnosing these maladies can be costly, time-consuming, inaccurate and imprecise. Further, there is no diagnostic process for these diseases that takes multitudes of factors into account, such as a patient's regulatory abilities. Another problem associated with the detection of said diseases is the lack of a generally-accepted paradigm for diagnosing diabetes, cardiovascular disease and autonomic neuropathy precisely. In the medical field, this leads to a great disparity in how diabetes, cardiovascular disease and autonomic neuropathy are diagnosed, charged and conducted.
Therefore, what is needed is a system and method for improving upon the problems with the prior art, and more particularly for a more efficient and precise way of measuring a patient's regulatory abilities in order to screen metabolic chronic diseases and/or their complications and/or their treatment management.